“What should we do now?”

The princess asked, almost as if she were talking to herself. She didn’t seem to expect a response from Malyn, but Malyn quickly began calculating their situation in her mind.

Only the two of them remained. There were twelve bodies in total, and no one was left to protect them. It was still a three-day journey by carriage to Veldam. Even though it was only three days, the idea of two women traveling alone was simply impossible.

But they had no choice but to go to Veldam. If the princess and her entourage didn’t arrive, Veldam would put pressure on Dion. Dion was a small kingdom… Malyn’s thoughts stopped there. She wasn’t someone who understood the intricacies of politics. All she knew was that Veldam was a large and powerful nation, while Dion was weak and unable to stand up to it – basic common knowledge.

So, what would the princess do now?

Malyn looked down at the bundle in her arms. Fortunately, nothing had been lost. One of the jars of ointment had lost its lid and was useless, but that was hardly a loss worth mentioning. After all, they had managed to keep their lives intact.

“We must go to Veldam, I suppose.”

The princess muttered again. Malyn stood silently watching her.

“My circumstances have become pitiful, haven’t they?” the princess sighed.

“It’s nothing new, really.”

Malyn jumped in surprise. It wasn’t her who had spoken. It was a third voice, and Malyn ducked and turned, afraid the bandits had returned.

But what she saw behind her was a chestnut horse with a black mane. Paradi. The princess’s horse. Malyn blinked and, almost without thinking, opened her mouth like a fool.

“A horse?”

“Paradi.”

The princess, on the other hand, was happy to call the horse by name. Malyn jumped and looked at the princess. There was a faint smile on the princess’s lips.

“You made it safely.”

“I’m not a fool like the others.”

The horse snorted, startling Malyn again. She turned to stare at it, her expression puzzled. The horse blinked its pitch-black eyes a few times before speaking again.

“The moment those brutes untied my reins, I kicked them and ran!”

“The horse… spoke!”

“Well done. They’re not after you, are they?” asked the princess.

“The horse is talking…!”

“I pretended to flee down the mountain, then circled it. They’re probably looking down there right now.”

“The horse is talking!”

“But they won’t be fooled for long. We must leave quickly.”

“A horse!”

Paradi shook his head and snorted. Malyn stood there, mouth agape, then spoke again.

“The horse… is talking…”

Paradi stared at Malyn, now in complete disbelief.

“Is this the first time you’ve ever seen a talking horse?”

At that moment, Malyn felt so frustrated that she wanted to beat her chest. Seriously, did talking horses just roll around like pebbles on the side of the road? But Paradi’s tone was so casual, and the princess just looked at Malyn and Paradi without saying anything. This left Malyn completely confused.

Are talking horses really so common, and am I just an ignorant country bumpkin seeing one for the first time?

It was then that the princess came to her aid.

“Enough, Paradi. Stop teasing her.”

“Hmph!”

The princess approached Paradi and patted the horse’s back, while Paradi turned his head sharply away. Malyn was stunned by the almost human gesture. This – this ridiculous horse was behaving ridiculously! But then Malyn was confused. If a ridiculous horse did something ridiculous, did that make it right? Luckily for Malyn, the princess came to her rescue once again.

“We must leave quickly, Mamarly.”

Malyn blinked a few times before realizing that the princess was addressing her. Marmarly? Where on earth had she heard her name said like that?

But then Malyn remembered a time when she had stammered in front of the Princess, and the Princess had called her Marmarly. Since the Princess hadn’t spoken to her much after that, it made sense that she might still think Malyn’s name was Marmarly.

Instead of correcting her, Malyn cautiously asked, “Where are we going, Your Highness?”

“To Veldam, of course.”

The princess’s face looked tired. It was easy to assume that it was only the result of a sleepless night spent shivering in the cold dew. But Malyn sensed a deeper weariness etched into her face, not just physical exhaustion.

And that was understandable. Returning to Dion was not an option for the princess, nor was running away. She had no choice but to continue on to Veldam.

But what should Malyn do?

Even if Malyn ran away now, the princess couldn’t punish her. She simply didn’t have the power. The princess’ power didn’t come from her, but from the castle in Dion, where she ate and slept. Here, in this place, only a horse, the princess and Malyn remain.

In the middle of the mountains, without a castle or her usual power, the princess couldn’t do anything to Malyn.

But Malyn quickly erased the thought of escape from her mind. Even if she ran away alone, there was nothing to be gained in a place like this. On the other hand, if Malyn accompanied the princess to Veldam, she would at least be well fed, and there was even a chance that she would receive three gold coins a year.

Perhaps, given the circumstances, she would be praised for accompanying the princess and even receive a single coin as a reward.

“What are you doing?”

The princess asked. Malyn quickly grabbed her bundle and walked towards her.

“Let’s go, Your Highness.”

“Alright.”

They both stood there for a moment, staring at each other in confusion. Malyn was stunned that the princess did not move, and she could see the confusion in the princess’s eyes as she looked back at her. Finally, the princess spoke again.

“What are you doing?”

” Uh…”

“Aren’t you going to support me?”

Oh.

Only then did Malyn realise what the princess wanted. The princess’s long velvet dress made it difficult to mount the horse, so the stablehand always stepped forward and supported her foot with his hands to lift her up. Now the princess expected Malyn to do the same.

Before Malyn could utter a thought like, “Is this girl seriously asking for this, even in a situation like this?” she was already on her knees. She clasped her hands together and turned her palms up on her knee as the princess stepped on her hands and mounted the horse. Although she was wearing a dress that made it difficult to sit astride, the princess seemed used to it. Her movements were graceful and precise.

It was a moment that should have felt strange, but instead Malyn found herself concentrating on an unfamiliar sensation and looked down at her hands. The feel of her palms was slightly softer, yet rougher than she had expected – more so than the touch of leather shoes she was used to.

Malyn glanced quickly at the princess’s feet as she mounted the horse. The princess was barefoot. The softness came from the soles of her feet, the roughness from the dirt that clung to them. Where the dirt hadn’t rubbed off, Malyn noticed small red drops of blood.

She must have lost her shoes somewhere along the way.

Instead of staring at the princess’s bare feet, Malyn turned her gaze to the princess herself. The princess’ indifferent eyes met hers.

“Your Highness, forgive my impertinence, but when did you lose your shoes?”

“While running.”

Malyn clutched her bundle and sprang to her feet.

“Then we must move quickly.”

“I agree, we must move quickly. I need new shoes too.”

“No.”

Malyn responded curtly to the princess’s words.

“If the bandits find a woman’s shoes, it could cause trouble. By now, they’re probably searching the mountain for a young woman.”